Child Custody Attorney

Child Custody in South Carolina

Considerations before entering into a child custody battle in South Carolina

Assessing Your Situation

As an experienced child custody attorney, Bill Connor will examine your case to determine the most efficient and appropriate course of action. my goal is to help you get a favorable custody agreement quickly and with as little financial and emotional discomfort as possible.

Executing Your Plan;

Child custody law can be confusing. As an experienced custody attorney, I will ensure that you receive proper representation when filing or responding to petitions, during mediations, and if necessary vigorous representation in court.

Closing Your Case

After an agreement, additional issues may occur.You may need:

Adjustment of parenting plan (visitation)Alteration of a child support orderPermission to relocate with your child Bill Connor can represent you in whatever legal capacity necessary

Under South Carolina’s child custody law, Most judges are expected to consider and apply 17 specific determinants.

Those factors are as follows:

(1) the habits and developmental needs of the child;

(2) the capability and the inclination of the parents to understand and meet the needs of the child;

(3) the custodial preferences of each child;

(4) the preferences of the parents as to custody;

(5) the past and current cooperation and involvement of the child with each parent, the child’s siblings, and any other person, including a grandparent, who may significantly affect the best interest of the child;

(6) the efforts of each parent to encourage a continued parent-child relationship between the child and the other parent, as is appropriate, including compliance with court orders;

(7) the manipulation by or coercive behavior of both parents in an effort to use the child in the parents’ dispute;

(8) any effort by one parent to discredit the other parent in front of the child;

(9) the capability of each parent to be pro-actively involved in the life and decisions of the child;

(10) the child’s adaptation to his or her home, school, and environment;

(11) stability of the child’s current and proposed residences;

(12) the mental and physical health of all individuals involved, except that a disability of a proposed custodial parent or other parties, in and of itself, must not be determinative of custody unless the proposed custodial agreement is not in the best interest of the child;

(13) the child’s cultural and spiritual background;

(14) whether the child or a sibling of the child has been abused or neglected by anyone have a presence in the life of the custodial parent;

(15) whether one parent has perpetrated domestic violence or child abuse, or the effect on the child of the actions of an abuser if any domestic violence has transpired between the parents or between a parent and another person or between the parent and the child;

(16) whether one parent has relocated more than one hundred miles from the child’s primary residence in the past year unless the parent relocated for safety reasons;

(17) other circumstances as the courts consider necessary.

This information is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. You should consult an attorney regarding your individual situation.